The Indian Navy Chief’s visit and Indo-Russian defence cooperation

Given the legacy of defence cooperation and ongoing projects, Russia will remain for the foreseeable future India’s major defence partner.

One of the most important features of Indo-Russian bilateral ties,
which form the core of the strategic partnership between the two
countries, is co-operation in the field of defence. India’s defence
budget for the current year is Rs. 1.5 trillion ($32.5 billion), a 40
per cent increase over the 2009-2010 budget. It imports more than 70 per
cent of its arms. The vast majority of those imports, 82 per cent, come from Russia,
which has long been India’s preferred supplier. The recently concluded
visit to Russia by Indian Navy Chief Admiral Nirmal Verma is in
continuation of the series of many such high-level visits of top defence
personnel and leaders from both countries to foster this relationship
in the face of emerging challenges.

Admiral Nirmal Verma visited the Russian Federation from 11 July to
18 July 2011, at the invitation of Admiral Vladimir Sergeivich
Vysotskiy, Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy. Admiral Verma’s was a
return visit to that of the C-in-C of the Russian Navy to India in
January 2011. It was aimed at further enhancing bilateral defence
cooperation. The Chief of the Indian Navy visited Moscow, St.
Petersburg, Vladivostok, Kaliningrad and Severodvinsk, and interacted
with a large number of senior Russian dignitaries including H.E. A.
Antonov, Deputy Defence Minister, as well as with his counterpart,
Admiral Vysotskiy. Admiral Verma also visited various design bureaus and
shipyards engaged in the construction of ships for the Indian Navy.
Issues related to defence cooperation and ongoing projects were
discussed in these meetings. The Admiral was very warmly received and
had extremely fruitful interactions during the course of his visit.

In a press release, the Indian Navy stated that Admiral Verma
“reviewed the progress of the Talwar Class follow-on warships, under
construction at the Yantar shipyard … and was reassured that the first
ship 'Teg' would commence trials shortly and be delivered in six to
eight months.”
The new frigates in this class, namely 'Teg', 'Teer' and 'Trikand' are
follow-ons of the three Talwar Class warships built for India by Russia
and inducted into service in the early part of the last decade. In the
new ships, the Russian-origin Klub missiles would be replaced by the
indigenous BRAHMOS supersonic cruise missile system.

During his visit to the Sevmash Shipyard where the aircraft carrier,
Admiral Gorshkov, is being retrofitted, Admiral Verma observed that
"significant progress had been made on the Gorshkov project and the ship
was shaping up well for the preliminary sea trials."
The Navy’s press release noted in this regard that Admiral Verma “made a
first hand assessment of all projects and held vital discussions with
officials at the highest leadership levels of the Russian armed forces
and defence industry. Reviewing ongoing projects, the Admiral observed
that they were progressing satisfactorily and had reached critical
stages of maturity. He also expressed satisfaction with the quality of
construction and repairs.”
Further, speaking to the Russian media, Admiral Verma said that the
Russian Mig 29KUB fighter jet designed for India’s aircraft carrier
Admiral Gorshkov was sound and the recent accident involving the
aircraft in which both the pilots were killed would not affect India’s
arms orders with Russia.

The two sides also discussed increasing cooperation in anti-piracy
operations. During discussions on operational exchanges between the two
navies, the two sides agreed that the INDRA series of exercises form an
important aspect of the bilateral relationship and therefore they must
be continued and extended in scope and participation. It is significant
to note here that on the visit, the Russian Navy Chief had confirmed
that the Akula-II class nuclear submarine K-152 Nerpa, to be
rechristened INS Chakra, will be handed over to the Indian Navy by
November-December 2011.

The Navy Chief’s visit assumed significance, since it came in the
backdrop of the Russian Navy backing out of a joint exercise (INDRA)
with the Indian Navy at the last minute.
It has been speculated that this was done to express displeasure at
India ruling out the MiG-35 in the race for the multi-billion dollar
medium multi-role combat aircraft (MMRCA) contract. Here it is pertinent
to point out that Russia must understand India’s defence acquisition
policy, which is guided by professional and not political
considerations. This was firmly stated by Defence Minister A.K. Antony
while addressing an International Seminar on Defence Acquisition
organized by the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses, New Delhi.
On this occasion, Mr. Antony said that India’s defence purchases are not
propelled by political considerations and assured the vendors that they
will get a level playing field. He also said that up to the trial
stage, technical soundness of a product will determine whether it will
remain in the race, after which the issue of price will determine the
ultimate selection.
Thus, it is unfair to attribute political motives for the exclusion of
the Russian MiG-35 from the MMRCA deal, especially since India greatly
values the defence partnership with Russia.
Both countries moreover place a high premium on this partnership, which
they have developed through a sustained and committed effort over
several decades. During the visit of President Dmitri Medvedev to India
in December 2010, it was decided to elevate the relationship to the
level of a “Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership”.

While it is true that the India-Russia relationship has witnessed
significant changes since the end of the Cold War, the one area in which
ties have been nearly unbroken is defence cooperation. And this, in
spite of the difficulties that India had faced in obtaining spare parts
and equipment in the aftermath of the erstwhile USSR’s collapse. The
defence deals with Russia (see Table) are built on the strong edifice of
the Indian military’s familiarity with Russian equipment, the
availability of cutting-edge technology, price competitiveness, and
above all the regularity of supply. This is what mainly led to India
financing the production of weapons in Russia at a time when the Russian
arms industry had suffered in the wake of the collapse of the Soviet
Union.

India’s Imports from Russia, 2005 - 2010

Weapon designation

Weapon description

Number

Mi-8/Mi-17/Hip-H

Helicopter

238

TV-3

Turboshaf

6

Su-24MK/Fencer-D

Bomber aircraft

22

9M133 Kornet/AT-14

Anti-tank missile

21680

53-65

AS torpedo

340

Kh-31M/AS-17 Mod-2

Anti-ship missile

1015

Su-30MK/Flanker

FGA aircraft

304

T-90S

Tank

345

Type-636E/Kilo

Submarine

10

Yak-130

Trainer/combat ac

Delivery in 2011

T-72M1

Tank

62

9M114/AT-6 Spiral

Anti-tank missile

13500

Mi-24VM/Hind-E

Combat helicopter

47

3M-54 Klub/SS-N-27

Anti-ship missile

513

Sovremenny

Destroyer

2

Il-38/May

ASW aircraft

2

MiG-29SMT/Fulcrum

FGA aircraft

18

PJ-10 BrahMos

Anti-ship missile

110

BRDM-2

Reconnaissance AV

25

T-80U

Tank

10

Gepard-3

Frigate

1

Source: Sipri Yearbook 2011

However, there are issues that continue to affect this relationship.
There have been repeated delays in Russia implementing major weapon
orders, including for the aircraft carrier, Admiral Gorshkov. Russia has
also tended to raise costs mid-way through the execution of agreed upon
commitments. Roadblocks have also emerged for the transfer of
technology and the uninterrupted supply of defence spares. In addition,
joint exercises that have been agreed upon have also been delayed or
postponed for various reasons including India’s attempts at diversifying
its sources of defence acquisition. These issues are indeed being
addressed during the course of regular visits by officials of both
countries,
including during Admiral Verma’s recent visit. India’s Defence Minister
A.K. Antony will also raise some of these issues with his Russian
counterpart when he visits Moscow in October 2011 for the eleventh
meeting of the India-Russia Inter-Governmental Commission on military
technical cooperation (IRIGC-MTC) – the main institutional mechanism for
defence cooperation.

Given the legacy of defence cooperation and ongoing projects,
Russia will remain for the foreseeable future India’s major defence
partner. However, in view of the increased competition for the Indian
defence market and the technological demands of India’s defence sector,
joint development and production of new weapon systems is likely to
become a crucial factor in sustaining Indo-Russian co-operation in the
coming years.